I guess this is a dumb question, how did his health get low?
I mean...he was in my house chillen out and out of the blue I notice his health is low.
Its not a dumb question at all and it can be caused by a few things that are worth remembering. Any injuries they sustain
outside of combat is not rehealed until you fix them with a stimpack, or engage in your next battle (so an easy way to do it is pick a fight with something weak, like a mole rat). It can happen by walking over a mine, bear/shotgun trap etc or being caught in part of a bigger explosion, like an exploding car.
Also, if you were in a fight, but ran away instead of finishing it, then any companion would not be rehealed in that case, since your enemy was not defeated. This can also sometimes happen when encountering multiple enemies at once and you miss the last one.